Today's guest is Bas Fransen, CEO and founder of EcoMatcher. Originally from Holland, Bas started his career in the Royal Dutch Navy and went on to become a technology executive with long stints at Phillips Semi Conductors, and then IBM.

He founded the tree-planting company he runs today, called EcoMatcher, in 2016. The for-profit business has by now planted over a million trees and is on track to plant several million more in the coming years.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/basfransenhk/
EcoMatcher:  https://www.ecomatcher.com/
The Hidden Life Of Trees: https://www.amazon.sg/Hidden-Life-Trees-Communicate_Discoveries-Secret/dp/1771642483

Hosted by Arshad Chowdhury, Managing Partner at Betatron: Betatron.co
Twitter: @arshadgc
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arshadgc/

TRANSCRIPT

0:53 How did you get into this business?

4:14 Planting a tree may seem simple, but what complexities have you encountered in the tree planting business?

6:12 Who maintains and monitors the trees in the areas where you operate?

8:09 In terms of carbon sequestration, how do you measure it, and how much carbon does each tree sequester?

9:51 What can listeners do to identify potentially fraudulent companies or practices?

12:38 Has your perspective changed after being in the tree planting business, and have there been any unexpected personal changes?

14:30 What are the key trends and opportunities you see in the tree planting and carbon offset industry in Asia?

16:27 What's next for EcoMatcher?